Book Review: The Silver Chair
The Silver Chair is the next to last (chronological) book in the Chronicles of Narnia. In it, we are re introduced to Eustace Scrubb, the young cousin of the original 4 Pevensies, who is turned into a dragon in the previous book. Eustace and his friend Jill Pole are transported into Narnia and immediately fall into an adventure to find the lost Prince Rilian.
It’s also where we meet one of my favorite characters in the land of Narnia, Puddleglum, the marsh-wiggle. Puddleglum is an uncommonly cheerful marsh-wiggle; however, as marsh-wiggles are best-known for their pessimism, he is still a rather gloomy fellow, described by other characters as a “wet blanket”.
Another reason I love the character of Puddleglum, is the 1990 BBC adaptation of The Silver Chair that featured Tom Baker in the role. For those of you “old school” sci fi fans, you will recognize the name Tom Baker because he played the title character of another BBC classic, Doctor Who. Baker played the 4th incarnation, and my favorite Doctor, by the way. David Tennant comes in a VERY close second.
In The Silver Chair, Aslan plays much more of a background figure, He provides the goals, tasks, and clues, but is not involved in any battles or rescues directly. Although Aslan is always around, you know, He’s not a tame lion.
The pace of The Silver Chair is much slower than in other Narnian tales, but it is still a great read and I whole-heartedly recommend it!
Other C. S. Lewis Recommendations
